HSBC monitors Greece as $6 billion exposure Europe’s largest

[unhappycamper]

http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite2_1_29/06/2015_551672



HSBC monitors Greece as $6 billion exposure Europe’s largest
By Stephen Morris
Monday June 29, 2015 (13:38)

HSBC Holdings Plc said it was “monitoring the developments” in Greece after the country imposed capital controls and shut banks to avert financial collapse. HSBC’s $6 billion of Greek assets is the most among European banks.

“Like all banks, HSBC has been working to prepare for such events and to take the necessary steps to meet relevant requirements,” the London-based company said in a statement on Monday. “We are monitoring the developments closely and will keep customers up to date via our websites when further material information becomes available to us.”

Europe’s biggest lender has cut its Greek assets from $7.3 billion since the end of 2013 and they account for 3.7 percent of HSBC’s total net asset value, mainly comprised of loans to banks and the shipping industry, Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. estimates. Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc has $376 million of Greek exposure, also primarily to banks and shipping.

Financial stocks declined the most since 2011 on Monday, losing more than $40 billion in market value. The seven-biggest banks on the U.K.’s FTSE 350 index fell 1.7 percent at 10:53 a.m. in London, with HSBC posting a 1.8 percent loss. Earlier in Asia the bank fell the most in eight weeks. The Stoxx 600 Banks Index dropped as much as 4.4 percent, lead by declines for financial firms in Italy, Portugal and Spain.

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HSBC reminds me of Goldman Sachs:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&gl=us&tbm=nws&authuser=0&q=hsbc%2Bscandal

[dixiegrrrrl]

1. HSBC moving out of London to save 10 billion in taxes.

It's called a levy, but still, it's expensive.

The levy is a tax on bank balance sheets — if you're headquartered in the UK, it doesn't just apply to your UK operations, but your whole global enterprise.

http://www.businessinsider.com/this-is-the-real-reason-that-hsbc-may-ditch-london-and-move-its-hq-abroad-2015-4